Hector Prado's life of contemporary fantastic realism
10 With Tom
10 questions in 10 minutes
I interviewed Hector Prado, this year's Coconut Grove Arts Festival poster artist. Here is our 10 With Tom interview. The festival is February 17-19, 2018.
Hector Prado and this year's poster art, "Wind of Change."
TOM: When did you start your career as an artist? When did you start showing and selling your work?
HECTOR: I feel that my career began when I was only eight years old when my dream was to become a painter one day. But being an artist in my country Colombia, at that time, was something unattainable. And as I grew up I left that dream for a stable job; work that gave me many successes and gains. Until 2013 I withdrew from advertising and resumed that dream as a child ... to be a painter.
TOM: Tell us about your studio or workplace.
HECTOR: My workplace breaks with all stereotypes of artistic study. Since as a businessman I believe in art as a professional business and not only as a bohemian and cultural movement. My space is in Pipeline, a beautiful place with a contemporary design and surrounded by intellectual geniuses in different branches of the creative industry.
TOM: What song would be the theme of your art?
HECTOR: Hahaha no one had ever asked me this. But thinking about it, I think that my art should have in tone and manner classic and contemporary, a perfect combination to captivate the hearts of my fans and collectors
This will definitely be the song:
Tula - Wicked Game (James Carter & Levi Remix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdjFrvRQWTk
TOM: What comic strip (new or old) would you like to crawl into and spend the day?
HECTOR: Definitely "Vampirela" or "Conan el Barbaro" versions illustrated by Frank Frazzettta in the 60's.
TOM: Superpower if you had one?
HECTOR: Once I asked myself that question and it would definitely be "stop the time" and see the world around me completely frozen. That would give me time to paint what impacts me the most in that moment without worrying about daily commitments. And enjoy that moment until I get tired.
TOM: What is the last thing you took a picture of with your cell phone?
HECTOR: It was a couple of days ago when I went to Frameworks to see the print work they are doing with the work "Wind of Change" for the Coconut Grove Art festival. There I met the employees and they shouted "Picture !!!" and then my manager Carmenza Ortiz took a picture of everyone with my cell and that filled my heart.
TOM: If you could go back in time and change one thing, what would it be?
HECTOR: I would like to go back to boyhood time and have the courage to pursue my dream of being a painter. Maybe now the story would be more interesting.
TOM: Favorite part of the Coconut Grove Arts Festival?
HECTOR: My favorite part is to see my artistic work alongside great artists who have marked the art industry with their work. I am an admirer of artists such as Romero Britto, Alejandro Mijares, Jacqueline Roch, Xavier Cortada, Guy Harvey, among others.
TOM: What are some things people told you about your piece at the poster unveiling party?
HECTOR: People have a lot of creativity and when they are in front of my work
They feel different emotions that connect them to a reality of their own lives. For example, here are some of the most memorable comments that they conveyed to me:
- “WOW WOW”
- “I love the way you paint the four elements”
- “mmm I want to meet the model of your artwork”
- “I don’t know anything about art, but this one is so sexy”
- “How much?”
- “I want to see the male version of this piece”
- “Is this a digital work? I can believe it is a hand made arwork
TOM: What is your art style:
I call it: "Contemporary Fantastic Realism." This personal genre is inspired by the Hispanic American literary "Magical Realism" movement that emerged in the mid-twentieth century and is characterized by the inclusion of fantastic elements in the narration, with which it is tried to modify the reality through the magical essence that there is in it.
Gabriel García Márquez is one of the greatest representatives of “magical realism" and his most recognized work was "100 years of solitude."
"Realism Fantastic Comtemporary" is about characterized by the inclusion of fantastic and irrational facts in a realistic context, reflected in the wonderful aesthetics of contemporary art.
In "Wind of Change" you can identify by a smooth graphite and a fantasy expression in a modern environment. In this Fantastic Realism, I faithfully portray the exterior of an object through its "hyper-realistic lens," combined with an openly fantastic or magical content, revealing the spirit of the work.
10 questions in 10 minutes
I interviewed Hector Prado, this year's Coconut Grove Arts Festival poster artist. Here is our 10 With Tom interview. The festival is February 17-19, 2018.
TOM: When did you start your career as an artist? When did you start showing and selling your work?
HECTOR: I feel that my career began when I was only eight years old when my dream was to become a painter one day. But being an artist in my country Colombia, at that time, was something unattainable. And as I grew up I left that dream for a stable job; work that gave me many successes and gains. Until 2013 I withdrew from advertising and resumed that dream as a child ... to be a painter.
TOM: Tell us about your studio or workplace.
HECTOR: My workplace breaks with all stereotypes of artistic study. Since as a businessman I believe in art as a professional business and not only as a bohemian and cultural movement. My space is in Pipeline, a beautiful place with a contemporary design and surrounded by intellectual geniuses in different branches of the creative industry.
TOM: What song would be the theme of your art?
HECTOR: Hahaha no one had ever asked me this. But thinking about it, I think that my art should have in tone and manner classic and contemporary, a perfect combination to captivate the hearts of my fans and collectors
This will definitely be the song:
Tula - Wicked Game (James Carter & Levi Remix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdjFrvRQWTk
TOM: What comic strip (new or old) would you like to crawl into and spend the day?
HECTOR: Definitely "Vampirela" or "Conan el Barbaro" versions illustrated by Frank Frazzettta in the 60's.
TOM: Superpower if you had one?
HECTOR: Once I asked myself that question and it would definitely be "stop the time" and see the world around me completely frozen. That would give me time to paint what impacts me the most in that moment without worrying about daily commitments. And enjoy that moment until I get tired.
TOM: What is the last thing you took a picture of with your cell phone?
HECTOR: It was a couple of days ago when I went to Frameworks to see the print work they are doing with the work "Wind of Change" for the Coconut Grove Art festival. There I met the employees and they shouted "Picture !!!" and then my manager Carmenza Ortiz took a picture of everyone with my cell and that filled my heart.
TOM: If you could go back in time and change one thing, what would it be?
HECTOR: I would like to go back to boyhood time and have the courage to pursue my dream of being a painter. Maybe now the story would be more interesting.
TOM: Favorite part of the Coconut Grove Arts Festival?
HECTOR: My favorite part is to see my artistic work alongside great artists who have marked the art industry with their work. I am an admirer of artists such as Romero Britto, Alejandro Mijares, Jacqueline Roch, Xavier Cortada, Guy Harvey, among others.
TOM: What are some things people told you about your piece at the poster unveiling party?
HECTOR: People have a lot of creativity and when they are in front of my work
They feel different emotions that connect them to a reality of their own lives. For example, here are some of the most memorable comments that they conveyed to me:
- “WOW WOW”
- “I love the way you paint the four elements”
- “mmm I want to meet the model of your artwork”
- “I don’t know anything about art, but this one is so sexy”
- “How much?”
- “I want to see the male version of this piece”
- “Is this a digital work? I can believe it is a hand made arwork
TOM: What is your art style:
I call it: "Contemporary Fantastic Realism." This personal genre is inspired by the Hispanic American literary "Magical Realism" movement that emerged in the mid-twentieth century and is characterized by the inclusion of fantastic elements in the narration, with which it is tried to modify the reality through the magical essence that there is in it.
Gabriel García Márquez is one of the greatest representatives of “magical realism" and his most recognized work was "100 years of solitude."
"Realism Fantastic Comtemporary" is about characterized by the inclusion of fantastic and irrational facts in a realistic context, reflected in the wonderful aesthetics of contemporary art.
In "Wind of Change" you can identify by a smooth graphite and a fantasy expression in a modern environment. In this Fantastic Realism, I faithfully portray the exterior of an object through its "hyper-realistic lens," combined with an openly fantastic or magical content, revealing the spirit of the work.
posted by Tom Falco at 4:00 AM
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